SWITZERLAND –Switzerland’s Healiva, a chronic wound-focused company, has acquired two new cell therapy assets from UK-based medical technology firm Smith+Nephew for an undisclosed sum.
The transaction will enable the Swiss firm to offer a wide range of low-cost, individualized, end-to-end wound care, including enzyme technology, autologous and allogeneic cell therapies, and medical devices.
The first asset, EpiDex, is an autologous epidermal equivalent that provides a surgery-free approach to healing chronic venous leg ulcers (VLUs).
EpiDex was previously approved for the Swiss market, and Healiva’s acquisition of the product dossier will enable a quick market re-launch in Germany and other EMEA countries
The second asset, now named healiva002, is an off-the-shelf, allogeneic cell therapy that has previously demonstrated clinical efficacy in healing VLUs resistant to standard treatments.
Healiva founder and CEO Priyanka Dutta-Passecker said: “We created Healiva to improve the lives of the millions suffering from chronic wounds by delivering innovative, effective new treatments to patients.
The biotech company from the Greater Zurich Area also plans to establish one of the world’s most comprehensive portfolios for affordable, personalized wound care with these remarkable cell therapies.
“By adding these pioneering technologies to our growing portfolio of wound treatments, we will be able to continue our rapid growth by progressing to commercialization within four years of founding,” Priyanka Dutta-Passecker said.
With 36 million people worldwide currently suffering from chronic wounds, there is an urgent need for novel solutions for hard-to-treat wounds.
“Following this acquisition, we are looking forward to bringing two such solutions to market, beginning with EpiDex in Switzerland, pending approval by Swissmedic, followed by Germany and other EMEA countries,” Bioseutica Group chairman and Healiva co-founder Valerio Maria Ferrari said.
Meanwhile, for healiva002, we will improve the product, scale up the manufacturing process, and continue its clinical development for future commercial success at scale.
Healiva said that patients with diabetes and elderly patients are the potential candidates for these treatments.
The firm develops wound solutions through a multi-pronged approach that combines enzyme technology, medical devices, and cell therapies.
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